The Tale of Genji
by Aquilos
Summary: Genji Shimada, youngest of the Shimada clan, now outcast. Thought to be dead, Genji was given a second chance at life by the Overwatch association. Reborn a new man and with a new purpose, Genji now wields his blade in the name of Overwatch, and in the name of vengeance.
1. Chapter 1

The heavy beating of my heart. The blurring of my vision. My palm, sweating. My legs fighting every effort I make to stand up and face him, my attacker, no, my brother. Beads of sweat roll off my forehead and each drop hitting the wooden floor, I heard as clearly as a thundercrack in the mountains. I gripped my wakizashi and tried to defend myself, but before I could even get close, it was finished. A cut clean across my torso. My vision was splattered with red. I felt my body go limp, and fall, my vision blurring. As my sight faded, I see my brother flicking blood, my blood, off his katana. But as my sight began to blur the most, I saw him most clearly, a man doing his duty. But it was not just him, I saw with even more clarity, those surrounding us. Men in white robes, who despite the cleanness of their garments, were soiled as if dragged through mud. I sighed my last breath and my vision became dark.

I woke up with a gasp, almost leaping out of my bed. I looked around me. I was not in the Shimada hall, I was still in my own quarters. I reach to wipe the sweat off my forehead, and was met with the cool metal kiss of my arm. " _Ah…"_ I thought to myself _"It's been so long, yet this feeling is foreign everytime I feel it."_ I got up and sat on the edge of my bad, scratching the back of my hair. I gave a sigh and got up, my cybernetic feet making light thumping sounds as I crossed the room. I stopped in a spot I've stood in countless amount of times, and looked through the semi transparent blinds of my window. _"But that recollection was always familiar every time I remember it."_ The day I was ousted from the clan. The day I was killed by my clan. The day I lost my my brother to the clan. I chuckled to myself slightly. The second one wasn't as true as the other two. They had tried to have me killed, and had my brother do it nonetheless, but fate as it seemed had other plans. As I gazed into the night, I recalled once again, as I have done many times, what happened when I awoke after the execution.

I gasped, breathing heavily. Above me, all I could see was a bright light and endless whiteness. I blinked a few times to gather my senses and comprehend what I was seeing. When I refocused my vision, I realized I wasn't just seeing light, I was looking at a light, in a room of some sorts. Trying to move my arm, I realized that it was weighted down by something. I raise my head, only to be met with a firm hand pushing it back down.

"No no no, stay down for now, you're in no condition to move anything in your current state." a voice that belonged to the hand, curtly said.

"Who, who are you?" I muttered, my voice dry and cracked. I saw the hand retreat, and a face take it's place above me. A woman's face, with draping golden locks, and an odd metal object in her hair resembling nothing less than a halo. Over one eye, she had a translucent blue eyepiece that adjusted its focus every so often, and with the other, she looked at me curiously, as if I were a surprising specimen that she had discovered.

"I am Dr. Angela Ziegler, but you can call me Mercy." She said over me, "I was the one responsible for saving your life after your, how to put it, more than mortal injury."

"What do you mean?" I asked, "Where am I?"

"You are in my hospital." She replied, "In my organization's headquarters to be exact."

"Organization?" I asked again, with slight concern in my voice. Countless groups out there were after the Shimada household, so I was wary about the term, fearing an enemy had captured me and kept me alive for information. She must have detected this in my voice because she cracked a slight smile.

"Yes, my organization, and quell your fears, I'm not here to hurt you. If I did, I would have left you for dead. And given the state you were in, it wouldn't have been far off." I was at a loss as to how to respond to that statement.

"You said more than mortal, what do you mean?" I asked.

"What do you think?" she asked me, curiously, "What do you remember about what happened?"

"I remember wounds, and a deep cut, but I don't know how bad it was." I closed my eyes and sighed, recalling the event. "How severe were the injuries? Doctor?"

"Why don't you take a look." Dr. Zieglar's head moved away. "Just as a warning, it's not what you expect." There was a mechanical whirring sound as the bed I was on rose up and tilted forward to where I was facing the wall my feet were just pointing at. Belts strapped across my torso and legs kept me from falling off. On the wall was a tall floor to ceiling mirror and I blinked a few times and gasped at my reflection. What stared back at me was no man I recognized. My face was covered with scars, some bandaged with the blood seeping through, others light but present. My once flawless complexion had now been marred by an innumerable amount of cuts and wounds. My right arm was held together by pins and it looked as though it were barely hanging there, if it was hanging there at all now. But my body, was the most terrifying sight to behold. A white plastoid shell was covering it, but there was a transparent panel over it that showed tubes connecting to the area around my chest, and the area around my hips. I gasped in shock to find that my heart was out beating in the open within its own chamber in the shell. It beat slowly and steadily in a chamber of bubbling liquid with tubes connecting to it so that my blood could still flow. I squinted my eyes and saw the worst of it all, that I wasn't just looking at a deep wound, but the fact that the top half of my torso was no longer connected to the bottom half. My brother's cut had severed me in half! A white covering covered the gap of flesh between the two sections of my body, but even though there was a lack of noticeable bleeding, the sight was a horror to behold. Looking down, I saw my legs, if they were still mine in a sense. One of them twisted at a horrible angle, the other one in a proto-cast, with the bone exposed. The doctor walked into my field of view again.

"As you can see, the cut was certainly deep as you predicted, but I do not believe you have anticipated the severity. Nor that of the rest of your injuries" I was at a loss of words.

"N-no, this has shocked me more than a sparrow who was just barely missed by a lightning bolt." The doctor gave a slight chuckle.

"Not going to pretend to understand where you came up with that metaphor. But you're right about it. The doctors here were surprised that we were even going to try to save you, but the higher ups commanded them to do so and so we did. Of course, I had to call in every skill and asset I have, but for now you are alive."

"As if one could call what I am now alive." I said, rolling my head to the side, "Even death would be preferable to this half existence."

"What if I said," The doctor began, "That we could return you to a full life?"

"Then I would first believe you are mocking me." I replied, turning to face the doctor, "But after seeing this and what you said you did, I am genuinely in believing of your offer."

"Then hear me out." The doctor said, as she unhooked a badge from the lab coat she had on and showed it to me, the silver and gold symbol shining under the white light. "I represent a group seeking to end chaos and bring order in the world, we deal primarily with the omnic attacks, but for a very long time, we have been also trying to keep tabs on your family's clan."

"They are family no more." I replied coldly,

"I can see obviously see why, but my point is," The doctor went on, "we've been trying to monitor the Shimada clan and try to stop their movement of illegal arms and trafficking. They've only contributed to hindering our fight with the rogue omnics, us being the global peacekeeping force and all. Anyway until now, we have been in the dark and had no way of penetrating the clan, nor tracking their movements and activities. Then of course, you happened."

"So what? You seek to use me for your own goals?"

"You can call it that," the doctor said, "Or you can call it being given an opportunity of exacting justice on those who tried to have you murdered." I stopped and pondered this fact and I become somewhat persuaded to agree to her deal.

"This is what you're offering me? In exchange for giving me back my ability to live again? You want me to betray my blood and kin."

"I thought you said they were family no more?" The doctor responded with a slight chuckle. Clever, I did say that. I leaned back my head and thought upon what I would do. True they had tried to kill me, but that does not change the fact that they are family. Then the thought of _him_ cut through my mind. Following that thought was the memory of the white robed elders who had witnessed my execution with sadistic glee, _"They did this."_ I thought. Then I remembered the final moments, _"No they encouraged it, but in the end, it was he who raised his sword against me. It was he who struck the final blow. They called it an honor killing, but there was no honor then."_ At that moment, I had resolved myself on a decision. "There is justice I seek," I said to the doctor, "but it will not be for your gain that I seek it."

"That is fine." she said, "Other than having to respond to assignments to the fullest of diligence and ability, you have free reign to do whatever you wish." I closed my eyes and once again saw my brother, a blood soaked sword in his hand.

"Very well." I replied with finality. "I agree to your offer." The doctor smiled, "In exchange for life, you shall have my blade."

"Good." she said, "Then I'll get preparations right under way." She turned and began to walk out the door.

"Wait." I said before she walked out, "Before you go, to who do I now pledge allegiance to?" She turned her head over her shoulder and said one name,

" **Overwatch**."


	2. Chapter 2

I had been standing so long in front of the window, that I didn't realize how much time had passed. When I finally returned to reality, the sun was already up, it's morning rays streaming through my window, illuminating my normally dim room. The alarm clock on the side of my bed begins to beep and blare, _"6:30, I guess it's time to go."_ I thought to myself. As if on cue, there was a knock on my door.

"Hello love? You up yet?" a peppy voice called through the door.

"Yes, yes I'm coming." I sigh as I grab my gear. I walk over to the altar directly opposite to the foot of my bed. On the altar were three things, my mask, a wakizashi, and a custom high frequency katana. I lift up the mask and put it onto my face, hearing the sigh of the machinery as it clicks into place. Then I attach the wakizashi and sheathe to the back of hip before turning to the katana. A gift from Torbjorn, I lift it, feeling the ergonomically sculpted handle in my hand, and draw the blade slightly, exposing the highly polished blade inside. The silver blade of the sword glinted brightly in the light of the morning sun and I saw my own reflection staring back at me from the heart of the blade. A metal mask with a green visor and a similar helmet " _This is who I am now."_ The sword then hummed to life in my hand and points of green light lit up along the handle and guard, indicating that it had synchronized with my cybernetics' power core. As I sheathed the sword and attach it to my back, I mutter a prayer as I have ever morning, "May the dragon's eye, behold my actions this day." Satisfied I turn and walk towards the door.

When I slid my quarters' door open, Tracer's bright orange goggles and flyaway hair filled my view.

"Took you long enough." She said as she turned and began strolling down the hallway. I sighed again,

 _"Tracer, Overwatch's walking talking alarm clock."_ I thought to myself."You know Tracer, you sure are in a hurry for someone who can bend time to their will." I followed her quickly.

"What's the point of having all the time in the world love," She turns on her heels, facing me, "if you're going to just waste it?" She spins around again and continues down the hall. I shrug and follow.

 _"So carefree,"_ I thought, _"How long has it been since I felt that?"_ I shook my head and followed along.

I followed Tracer into the mess hall where other agents and personnel were already present, eating or waiting in line for whatever the chefs had cooked up today. I got in line to get some food, but then Tracer ran off again, saying something about having to go get Torbjorn out of bed before his furnace explodes. "It wouldn't be the first time." I said to myself as I picked up a tray. Breakfast was the same as usual today, bland oatmeal, two eggs and a strip of bacon. There was bread for you to take at will and some jam to go with it. According to what I heard, the food wasn't meant to taste exquisite, just to provide you with what you need to get through the day and work. I sat down in an empty table by myself in the corner and poked at the oatmeal. It had the consistency of tar, and smelled a bit like it too.

"Not a fan of the cement-meal are ya?" A gruff voice said beside me. I turn my head to see the colossal form of Reinhardt looming over me, clad in an XXL black tank top and massive cargo pants.

"Reinhardt." I greeted,

"Mind if I join ya?" He asked as he sat down beside me. I felt the balance of the table shift to the left as he sat down, the seats creaking beneath his bulk.

"You're always welcome." I replied. Reinhardt cracked a large grin and began shoveling spoonfuls of the sludgy oatmeal into his mouth. Reinhardt Willhelm was one of the few fellow agents I considered a true close friend. He was one of the first operatives of Overwatch and also happened to be the oldest member as well, with a head of white hair and an equally white beard to compliment it. I think I liked Reinhardt, because in a way, we're similar. We're both warriors who follow the ancient codes of conduct and honor, and we both eschewed guns and bombs for instruments that paid tribute to our proud heritage. He finished off the oatmeal and gave a massive burp after he set down the bowl.

"Sorry about that." He said with another grin.

"Don't worry about it." I said as I removed my mask and began to eat as well. I managed to force down a few spoonfuls of the oatmeal before I gave up and worked on the eggs and bacon. Reinhardt looked away as I had my mask off. He knew better than any else I didn't like people staring at my scarred face and he did his best to make it seem he was disinterested about the topic. I considered it a form of respect from one warrior to another, which might have served as the basis for our friendship. After I had finished eating and put my mask back on, Reinhardt turned to face me again.

"Hey so I heard from Morrison that we might be getting deployed out to Japan sometime this week."

"What for?" I asked, wary of the name.

"Something about pocket skirmishes with guerilla omnics in the cities," Reinhardt stroked his beard as he talked, "It should be nothing too big, but the top brass wants us to check it out anyway, just in case it blooms into a full on disaster like how it did back in Moscow."

"Moscow was the result of their government's arrogance." I replied, remembering the sudden rush of Omnics down the Red Square, "We offered help and they turned us back without even considering the options." Reinhardt laughs a bit,

"Well I think they figured that part out while they were digging through the rubble of the Kremlin."

"Part of the Kremlin," I replied, correcting his error, "Remember we disobeyed orders in the last second and stopped 'most' of the destruction." Reinhardt got up and stretched out his arms.

"Hey you up for a little sparring after breakfast?" he asked as he stretched and cracked his knuckles. "I could use a little bit of a warmup before we start today's assignments, you know get the old swinging arm oiled and running."

"I'm always happy to duel you, Reinhardt." I replied. I got up to put our trays away.

"I'll meet you there in five?" Just as I was about to respond, an alarm blared throughout the facility, and a message came over the intercom. "All available agents, report to hanger bay B-2 immediately. All available agents, report to hanger bay B-2 immediately. We have a Class 4 alert in progress, I repeat, we have a Class 4 alert in progress." Reinhardt and I looked at each other and nodded.

"Guess we'll have to postpone that match until later."

"I guess so." I replied, wondering what the situation might be, as personnel began frantically streaming out of the doors to their posts.

"I'll go suit up, see you in the hanger." Reinhardt yelled to me as he ran out of the door. I gave a slight nod before dashing out too towards the hanger.

Within ten minutes of the announcement, all the active agents were gathered in the hanger bay, Strike Commander Reyes facing the assembled group, prepared for his briefing. Beside him, Morrison stood with his arms behind his back, his sharp gaze scanning the group. I had gotten to know Reyes and Morrison pretty well by the second day I was in Overwatch. Tracer liked to described their personalities as, "In an interrogation, you call Reyes to beat the information out of them, you call Morrison to sweet talk it out of them. They're basically bad cop, good cop."

"Ok listen up." Reyes announced as he stepped forward, "At 0600 hours this morning, Watchpoint Tokyo reported a small spike in omnic activity on Mt. Fuji. Just now we have received reports of a Class 5 Titan emerging 100 kliks away from Tokyo City from the base of the mountain. It is currently approaching the city at a speed of 5 kilometers an hour. The city evacuation process is already underway, but we have been called in to assist. The priority is to contain and defend the city from the titan until the citizens are safe and we are able to assess and deal with the situation. Is that clear?" A resounding "YES SIR!" echoed throughout the Morrison stepped up, a holomap projecting behind him.

"Ok so the plan is we will parachute to the objective via scramjet. From there, we divide into two teams. Alpha squad will provide defense for the city borders from any omnics that might try to slip through. Bravo squad will attempt to stall or distract the titan. The rest of you will be manning the rescue shuttles to evacuate the citizens. Alpha squad will consist of Tracer, Genji, Reinhardt, Mei, and myself. Bravo squad will consist of Winston, Torbjorn, Amari, and Strike Commander Reyes. Mercy and her medics will be making rounds to ensure all emergencies are tended to. Bravo squad is encouraged to be exercise extreme caution when approaching the Titan, as it is believed to be armed with Hellfire class missiles, high caliber gatling guns, and multiple high energy focus beam cannons. Remember only do what is necessary but don't sacrifice too much for the sake of it. Safety comes first, and if worst comes to worst, we'll have a wave of airstrikes ready. Now let's move out!" I climbed aboard the scramjet along with the rest of the members and personnel. Within minutes we were in the air, utilizing faster than sound speeds to rush towards Tokyo from our Swiss headquarters.

"We'll be in the combat zone in 6 hours people." Reyes said from the front. "So prep your gear and get some rest, we're going to be in for a tough fight." Reinhardt, next to me in his massive armor closed his eyes and tried to get some sleep in. I decided to meditate a bit to prep my mind and body before the fight because something told me I would need all my wits and skills for this one.

 **Well what do you guys think, am I getting better at this?**


	3. Chapter 3

The sound of the alarms woke me up from my meditation and the aircraft interior switched over to the emergency red lights. Next to me, Reinhardt snapped awake and his armor shifted into full activation mode. Down the aisle Reyes got up and called everyone to attention. "Rise and shine ladies!" He called out, "We're about five mikes away from the drop zone and if you look out the jet right now, you will see hell unfolding beneath us. Now the JSDF has agreed to give us full support and assistance in this operation, so use it properly. Now, let's go bust some heads!" I readied my shurikens in my hand and switched the HUD in my helmet to combat mode. The gears and armor pieces on my suit shifted and whirred to life, ready to readjust at a moment's notice to deflect incoming attacks. All around me, my fellow agents are readying for combat. Torbjorn is checking his metal supply, Tracer is making sure her chrono accelerator is fully charged, Amari adjusting her scope, Winston cleaning his glasses...I digress. Next to me Reinhardt put on his helmet and tested the jets on his hammer.

"All good here." he said to me heartily, giving me a thumbs up. I gave him a thumbs up in return and we bumped fists for good measure.

"Happy hunting." I said back to him. The emergency light switched to green, and then the rear hatch opened up. Enormous gusts of wind blew into the scramjet, whistling throughout the cabin. Beneath me, I could see the clouds of Japan and signs of battle on the ground below. I got up with the others and made sure my landing chute was on properly. Reyes stepped towards the hatch first.

"Well what are we waiting for? Let's go!" He then leapt right out of the hatch, towards the ground below. With that cue, the rest of us followed suit. Morrison followed him and Tracer gave us her signature salute before diving down while Reinhardt more or less tumbled out in his colossal suit of armor. I followed him right after that. In the air, I dove downwards in a linear position until I was right next to reinhardt. Beneath me, I could see a few others adjusting their positioning so they hit the LZ properly. Then airbursts starting exploding around us. I threw myself to the side to narrowly avoid a burst of shrapnel next to me.

"Watch out guys." Morrison's voice came over our comms, "The omnics below are trying to pepper us with AA guns and airburst cannons, don't get caught in the flak. I'd hate to have to send you home in a bucket." I toggled my hud display to mark the incoming fire. My visor instantly marked predicted bullet trails and tracked missiles while also marking the sites of the AA guns.

"Look out guys," I said over my comms, "I'm picking up a large cluster of Stingers over on the hill over there."

"Spread out." Reye's voice commanded us, "Those things will mop the floors with us if we cluster too close, use cloud cover if you can." Stingers, heavy artillery omnics armed with high explosive missiles and guided cluster warheads. They were specially designed to be anti aircraft and anti platoon machines, and they were good at what they were supposed to do. As if on cue, The Stingers began bombarding us with missiles and AA fire. I did some acrobatic maneuvers to avoid getting hit and sometimes used the missiles as springboards to get away. Some ways away, Reinhardt had his shield up and was blocking as many incoming projectiles as he could. Winston likewise had his bubble shield up and other agents began forming up behind the 2. When we hit one thousand feet, Reyes gave the order to deploy our chutes. I yanked the cord on my harness, deploying four hard light fields from my pack. Immediately, the fields caught the wind and slowed my descent. I maneuvered myself to form up behind Reinhardt and the strike force and I dropped through the flak onto the LZ.

I hit the ground running and wasted no time throwing off the harness. Reinhardt and Winston landed next to me, their retro rockets activating to ease their landings for them. Everyone else came down with them each getting rid of the chutes as fast as they could. I looked around to get my bearings of the battlefield. To the east was the walls and battlements of Tokyo, to the west, the colossal form of the Titan, stomping closer and closer to the city with every step. It was enormous, almost one hundred stories tall and was unleashing its armaments on the field in front of it. Swarming around it, I could see hundreds of Bastion units in recon configurations along with transport omnics carrying Bastion units in sentry mode. I could see a large battalion of JSDF forces engaging the omnics, trying to halt their advance, but with every passing moment, they were losing ground. Swarms of Bastion units and omnics were breaking through, making their way to the city. Reyes called everyone to attention.

"You guys know the plan, let's move!" Him and his team raced off towards the Titan.

"C'mon we got a city to save!" Morrison called out as he took off towards the city walls. I followed immediately behind while Mei, Tracer, and Reinhardt followed.

As we made our way to the city walls, we had to battle through the omnics that were trying to attack the city. They seemed to be less interested in us than the walls, but that didn't mean they didn't try to kill us. Tracer and I zipped around the omnics and destroyed as many as we could while Mei, Reinhardt, and Morrison strong armed their way through by trying to charge through their offensive line. Mei sent an icicle through the omnium of any omnic that got to close and Morrison was shooting off helix rocket after helix rocket. Reinhardt kept busy trying to block incoming fire and smashing apart groups of omnics that tried to close in. I weaved in and out between omnics and dodged bullet fire with my shurikens and wakizashi out. Wasting no energy, after I took down one, I dashed for the very next. Whether it was a slice through the main body, shurikens through the power core, or deflecting back their incoming fire, I was never out of options of dismantling the omnics that lay before me. When I thought I had thinned the herd enough, I heard a " _Doo dee doo doooo!"_ I turned around and instinctively rolled out of the way just in time for a tank shell to detonate, right where I was standing a split second earlier. I look up to see two squads of over a dozen Bastions in Tank configurations rumbling towards me.

"Get back here Genji!" I heard Morrison yell over the comms. I turned and raced for the rest of my team, who were ducking behind Reinhardt's massive shield. The area behind me began getting bombarded by high explosive shells from the Bastions and I lept into cover, just as a salvo of shells exploded against the shield. The force of the blast sent Reinhardt sliding backwards through the dirt.

"Hnnng!" He groaned as he braced against the blast. "I hope you guys have a plan because I don't know how much more of those hits I can take." Morrison then motioned towards Mei and Tracer.

"Tracer, Mei, I need you to take out the squad on the left, Genji you and me on the right. Got it?"

"Already on it love!" Tracer, gave a quick salute and reached for a pulse bomb.

"沒問題!" Mei said as well, taking out her blizzard-bot. Morrison reached to his eyepiece and activated his tactical visor. The pistons on my armor extended out and pulsated a bright green energy as I released the inhibitors on my power core and went for my katana, strapped on my back.

"Ready." I said

"Then let's go!" Morrison commanded. On his cue, all of us ran out from behind Reinhardt and charged towards the Bastions. Morrison raise his rifle and began firing at the Bastions with pinpoint accuracy. I lept into the hair over the Bastions, and drew my katana.

 _"Ryūjin no ken o kurae!"_ I flourished the blade and a green dragon trailed behind the sword. Aiming at the Bastion unit right beneath me, I boosted myself down and sliced it cleanly in half through the top. I looked up and launched myself off the one on my right, while slicing apart its core, onto the one on the left and drove my katana through the top of its chassis through its omnium. I finally turned around to face the last Bastion, but then it exploded in a violent explosion. I see Morrison giving me a quick wave through the smoke.

"Already taken care of." Around him were the smoking debris of former Bastion units.

"As I can tell." I looked over to see Tracer and Mei running away from their group of frozen Bastion units, as Tracer's pulse bomb came down to its final tick. With a warping sound and then a shockwave, the Bastion units were obliterated.

"Cheers love!" Tracer called to us while waving. I see Reinhardt lower his shield and give us a thumbs up.

"Finally that's over." he said.

"Well we're not done yet." Morrison reminded him, "There will be more units coming towards us so we better hurry to the walls and rendezvous with the JSDF. Hopefully, before the walls are breached. C'mon, keep up!" Morrison sprinted down the field towards the city.

"No need to tell me twice." Tracer said as she blinked towards him.

"C'mon get on!" I felt a giant hand scoop me up and before I knew it, Reinhardt was rocket charging towards the city, Mei and me in tow in his giant hands.

 **Hi guys sorry for not posting in so long. I had a lot of stuff to do in June so I had no time to write.**

 **P.S. What mei says is "No problem" in Chinese.**


End file.
